PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

If you think all museums are inside, think again. Riverview Park in Observatory Hill has just been designated a nationally certified arboretum, a type of outdoor museum of trees.

Certification comes from the ArbNET Arboretum Accreditation Program and the Morton Arboretum, outside of Chicago. The  accreditation program, started in April 2011, means that Riverview Park has maintained nationally recognized standards of professional practices important for arboreta and botanic gardens. The City learned of this just a week before Arbor Day on Friday, April 26.

It’s the third City of Pittsburgh Park designated as a Level 1 arboretum, although there are other places in the Pittsburgh area — Homewood and Allegheny cemeteries and an arboretum on the Carnegie Mellon University campus, for example — that also have these certifications. 

Both Mellon Park in Shadyside and Westinghouse Park in North Point Breeze were designated as arboretums in 2021. To qualify, there has to be an arboretum plan, an organization or governance group that oversees the trees and botanical gardens and a minimum of 25 species, varieties or cultivars of trees or woody plants that are labeled for educational purposes. There also must be public access, a staff or volunteers who take care of the property and at least one public event or educational program each year, such as an Arbor Day observance.

ALLEGHENY OBSERVATORY IN RIVERVIEW PARK | PHOTO SHUTTERSTOCK

Riverview Park, the city’s fourth largest park at 259 acres, is known for its dense woods, steep topography and many hiking trails. It’s capped by the landmark Allegheny Observatory, opened in 1912, that’s located on a hill near the park’s entrance. It also includes a visitor’s center, public pool, playground, ball field and chapel shelter.

“It’s evident that residents in every Pittsburgh neighborhood have a love and appreciation for our City’s trees. It’s been wonderful working with The Friends of Riverview Park group on the Arboretum accreditation,” said Lisa Ceoffe, city forester from the Department of Public Works, in a statement. 

To date, ArbNet has accredited 600 arboreta in the United States and 40 other countries.